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Neradea33
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The Lunch Date (1989)
Interesting and surprising
The story takes place in a train station where a woman is rushing to catch her train but drops her belongings and ends up missing the train. Due to this event she is forced to go and wait for the next one in a restaurant in the train station. In this restaurant she buys a salad and put it on a table with her bags and go to take a fork. When she comes back a man is eating the salad and she is surprised because she thinks its her. An interesting exchange then happens between the characters without a single word of dialogue but rather with gestures and gazes.
I really appreciated this effort on minimal dialogue in the short movie, a lot of things are said through their actions. In addition the end of the short movie is really unexpected even though the beginning seems a little bit basic !
If you have a few minutes I would definitely recommend you to watch this short movie !
Terry Tate, Office Linebacker (2002)
simply amazing !
In this short movie we enter the funny and humorous universe of an American office where employees are forced and constrained to work properly after the arrival of an office linebacker. The linebacker is really special. Indeed, when the workers make a mistake (for instance throwing a can I a wrong trash) or do their task with a small amount of enthusiasm, the linebacker jump on them and tackle them. In a nutshell, the "Terrible" linebacker ensures that everything works well in the office.
What is really appreciable in the movie is the excessive amount of humoristic behaviors coming from all the characters: from the extreme enthusiasm of the office linebacker to the fear of the other workers, the audience is fulfilled with hilarious moments. Another noticeable aspect is this whole exaltation of references to the American culture: from the American football uniform to the music. This can be quite interesting in the sense that this is visible the whole movie.
On the whole, this short movie is a typical American short movie, but the funniest part relies in the excessive hilarious office linebacker. I would really recommend to catch it !
Otousan no tabako (2007)
A poignant and thought-provoking story !
The errand is a story of a little Japanese schoolgirl who is living with her mother and her dying father. When her mother is at work, her father gives money to the little girl so that she can go and buy cigarettes in a cigarette vending machine near their places. The little girl is torn between her mother, who obviously is against this behavior, and her father, who promises her that if she does so, he will get better soon. One day, as she goes to buy the cigarette, the vending machine do not work properly, and the little girl can not buy cigarettes. She finds herself being torn between what she has to do: go back home and make her father sad or try to find cigarettes in another way. She ends up asking one cigarette to a young woman who buys cigarette in the same vending machine. When she goes back home and gives it to her father, he refuses and says this will not be necessary.
What I found really interesting in the short movie is the focus on the little girl's inner struggle without to much dialogue but rather by showing how confused she is through her actions. Another interesting thing is the strong morality and the stress on how bad tobacco can be for the health. These two factors make the short movie really interesting and worth it. Therefore I would recommend you to watch it !
Born with It (2015)
Thinking about the otherness in Japan
Born with it is the story of a young black Japanese boy, Keisuke, who arrives in a new school in the Japanese countryside. His arrival is really shocking for the other pupils in the class who do not understand why he speaks Japanese so fluently. Indeed, to them you can not be black and be Japanese at the same time. The short film thus exposes a lot of school discriminations associated to skin color through the example of Keisuke. Among all of the pupils, only one little boy wants to play with Keisuke. Therefore, during the short movie we can feel the loneliness of the character and the pain associated to stereotypes and racism. What is really interesting in terms of screenwriting is how, despite the static situation the main character undergoes an inner conflict that he's going to solve. Indeed, Keisuke is firstly submissive to attacks and insults and ends up believing them while at the end he looks confident about who he is. So the contrast between a static situation (racism is not going to be solved in 15 minutes) and the character's inner conflict is really interesting. If you feel like thinking about deep social issues in Japan while watching a movie I would highly recommend this one !
Embers (2006)
deep and staggering
Embers is the story of a middle age woman who waits for her husband/companion. This man has been missing for a certain amount of time because he seems to be a soldier at war. The movie is really centered on the woman's emotions: her restlessness toward the situation, her insecurities and her concerns. One day the man suddenly reappears. If the woman's joy is obvious and expected by all the viewers, the situation happens to be really different. Indeed, she's happy but the traumatizing hallucinating view of a Japanese soldier beheading her keeps on coming back. Plus, her husband's behavior seems to be different, and this feeling is confirmed the day she actually discovers he kept an ear as a war souvenir. This plot is more than interesting first in its deep meaning. Indeed, even though most of the viewers can not relate to the war traumatize, it can ring a bell in terms of traumatizing experiences and somehow I felt that, in this way, viewers can relate to the woman's situation or at least understand her. Another thing is the emphasis on visual story telling that enables us to understand the background of the characters without long sentences or a complex dialogue. On the whole, I would say that it is worth it to take some time to watch this short movie.
Tonari no Totoro (1988)
Fascinating ...
Tonari no Totoro is an animated film which tells the story of Satsuki, Mei and their father Tatsuo who just moved into a new place, a little house in the Japanese countryside, so that the girls are closer to their mother's hospital. The little house is surrounded by fields and forest. In the nearest forest, Mei and Satsuki are going to create strong ties with the forest spirits called Totoro. The forest spirit is really powerful in the way that, in a certain angle, he can represent the hope of the two young girls toward their mother's health and the wish that it gets better. What is interesting in this movie, is that it is different from the classic outline when the lead character has to fight/ win over an enemy which is another character. There is no enemy in this story, the main problem that hooks viewers is the disease. In this way Tonari no Totoro is different from most of animated movies putting forward the enemy and his/her fall as a goal. Moreover, the magical atmosphere of the movie, halfway between the real and the imaginary, plunges the viewers in a particular mood and way of thinking and incents them to feel more concerned about the problem while still not being too worried. Indeed, the movie is far from being a tragedy and the magical atmosphere debunks the stress of the disease in a way. From its deep content to the way it is structure, Tonari no Totoro is a really beautiful movie that I would definitely recommend watching!
The Shape of Water (2017)
Pioneering and captivating
Shape of water is the story of Elisa, a young mute woman, who works as a cleaning woman in some kind of laboratory. Elisa does not seem to be interested into the laboratory's activities until one certain day when she notices a strange creature in one of the room. She starts communicating with this watery creature and they end up having friendship bond. Notably because Elisa starting to feed the creature with boiled eggs. One day, when she notices that the creature is often beat and mistreated by the laboratory director, she decides to secretly make the creature escapes to her own apartment. From this point, she gets physically closer to the creature, who lives in her bathtub, and plans on releasing him in a canal near her place. However, the director of the laboratory is still looking for the creature and is ready to do everything to find it. Beyond the obvious suspense raised by the plot of this movie, we can easily appreciate the unusual environment and predicament of the action which hook the viewer due to their originality. Furthermore, Elisa and the creature being unable to speak and to communicate with words, a real stress on visual storytelling is done in this movie and is visible all along the action. In a nutshell, the very original plot and the construction of Shape of water lead us, as viewers, to be hooked by the action and that is why I would recommend you watch it!
Tomboy (2011)
Absorbing and well-constructed!
The movie is the story of Laure, a young French girl who moves to a new place and has to find a place within the children group of her neighborhood. Dominated by young boys, the group counts only one girl who is going to become Laure's confident without actually knowing that she is called Laure. Indeed, Laure pretends to be a boy, Mikael, as soon as she arrives in the neighborhood. The movie is thus, centered on Laure's attempts to be look, behave, talk and act like a boy within the group while she is still hiding this double identity to her parents. This unusual plot is really interesting. First, it raises deep issues that may ring a bell to some viewers. The issues of identity, peer pressure, gender and community are raised throughout the movie. Therefore, Tomboy is the proof of movie's ability to raise personal questions in the viewers mind. Secondly, the notions of active questions and suspense can be applied to this movie. While the time passes and Laure's attempts to look like a boy are compromised either by herself or by her peers. Thus, during the whole movie a single question hooks the viewers: "is her identity going to be discovered?". Altogether, through its content and its form, Tomboy is a really interesting to watch if you are willing to think a little bit!
Lifted (2006)
hilarious
This short animation movie is the story of a young alien who tries to pass an ability test for the spaceship he works in. His goal is to lift a man, sleeping in his room, and bring him to the vessel. Without any words of dialogue, the screenwriter manages to convey a really funny state of mind to the viewer by putting emphasis on comic actions and gags. Beyond, it shows a real work in terms of visual story telling because everything is focused on the way the character act and behave towards each other. Another thing that is remarkably well conveyed through this visual work is suspense. Even though it is not comparable to a normal movie in this term (it is not a long movie with a lot of sequences, a lead character that we know and a solid plot) a lot of questions come to our mind as viewers (Is the Alien going to pass the test successfully? What will he get if he passes?) This funny side of the plot stays during the whole movie. From the beginning to the end, the movie is really humourous and enjoyable! Therefore, I would recommend you take 5 minutes to watch it!
The Crush (2010)
Unpredictable
The short movie is the story of a young primary school boy who seems to be in love with his teacher. If his teacher really likes him, it is obvious that the context and the age difference between the two characters draw a barrier between them. One day the young boy realizes that the woman he loves actually has a companion, that she is about to marry. But the boy discovers that her companion did not even take time to take her for lunch and then judges that this person is not good enough for the teacher. Therefore, he decides to defy the companion in a "gun fight" which of course, the companion accepts, believing that the boy is joking. If the story can seem a little be weird when its only told, there is a real effort in the scenario in terms of unexpected events and complication. It is also necessary to underline that a lot of active questions come to the viewers notably regarding the end of the movie. If you like the kind of movie with unexpected situations and turnarounds, I would recommend you to watch it !
J'attendrai le suivant... (2002)
Tear-jerking and authentic ...
The short movie takes place in an underground train in France. A man enters the crowded train and starts talking loudly to catch the attention of the people. Claiming that he's not doing anything for money, he starts explaining how he is looking for love and starts explaining his own conception of love. During all this time, the majority of the people in the train is listening to the man and especially a woman, who seems to be around 40 years old and who seems to be really hooked by the man's words about love. An interesting aspect of the movie is the emphasis on visual story telling. Indeed, nothing is said or written about the woman's background, but the way she stares at the man implies maybe some kind of loneliness in her life or some kind of admiration. The emphasis put on the woman's gaze is a powerful tool used by the screenwriter to make the viewer think about her background. In addition, putting personal issues and questions through a simple and daily life scene is a proof of a good screenwriting and enables the viewers to share feelings more easily with the characters. The whole movie and especially the end will really make you think about human relationships in a general perspective and that is why I would recommend you to watch it !
Three Days in Kamakura (2012)
Breathtaking ...
Three Days in Kamakura is a short movie, telling the story of David,a teacher in a school in Kamakura, and his wife Keiko going through a complicated marital situation notably regarding children and sex. One day, Jay, a little boy and pupil in David's school ends up alone in the school because no one comes to pick him up. David decides to take care of him and to take him to his place. Keiko and David enjoy moments with Jay as a real family which makes the situation at the same time really happy but also sad knowing that Jay's parents are not David and Keiko. The short film raises intimate and personal questions about family, pregnancy, sexuality, love and children. The ability to raise such deep questions that could literally take a whole book in less than 20 minutes, shows the power of screenwriting and visual representation in raising deep human and social issues. Beyond making the viewers think about those deep topics, the scenario hooks us and makes us want to know what's going to happen to David, Keiko and Jay. The notion of active question can thus be brought into the analysis of this movie: where are Jay's parents? Are David and Keiko going to keep Jay ? What precisely happened between David and Keiko causing their marital tension and so one and so forth. Altogether, Three Days in Kamakura is one of the most, if not the most touching and deep short movie you can see! If you have 20 minutes free, I would highly recommend watching it.
Whacked (1998)
Hooking viewers until the very end
*THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS*
The short movie presents the story of a man who picks up golf balls in a golf field with a car that is often hit by the balls during the day. By the end of his work day, he ends up going with some of the golf balls on a rooftop and play his own golf game. The action seems to take place in an American big city such as New York, which is obviously crowded. The balls sent by the man somehow kill people in the streets, but the man doesn't seem to realize this. A very interesting thing to notice is that there is a special arrangement in the movie in terms of chronology. Indeed, in the first scene we see the people that the man killed with the balls dying in the streets, but we don't know why, by who and how. The final answer (showing that the people have been killed by the man shooting balls from the rooftop with his golf club) only comes at the end of the short movie. Therefore, we can say that the movie is really interesting because from the very beginning viewers are triggered and want to know how and why. This is the notion of active question and it continues after when we are introduced to the man and see him working. What is the link between people dying in the street and this man working in the golf area? Such questions hook viewers until the very end of the movie. For this reason I would recommend to watch this kind of movie.
Fish Out of Water (2005)
Good symbolism and visual story telling
In the short movie we are introduced to a young man making his way to work with his own boat to avoid rush hours and enjoy calm and peacefulness every day. If he enjoys his situation and way of life, his carelessness leads him to offer other people his service and taking them in his boat. He ends up being eventually really embarrassed by the situation since he can't enjoy calm and serenity. Without any word or any dialogue, the movie makes viewers wonder about topics such as peer pressure, greed but also the issue of enjoying our own company. What is really interesting is the stereotyped personalities of the other characters that make benefit of the young man's boat. For instance, the second man is portrayed as 'fat' and makes the boat slower and more difficult to drive. These stereotyped portraits are made through a real visual story telling for instance, this fat man has a tie with a pig on it. There is no dialogue in the short movie showing that the screenwriter put emphasis on visual representations to make the viewer think rather than putting long dialogues about all of these issues. Even though the stakes raised by the short movie are not deep societal problems, we can easily relate to them. This is kind of a good opportunity to think a bit, and this is why I would recommend to watch the movie !
Father and Daughter (2000)
A deep story through representation
This short movie shows the story of a father and his daughter getting apart from each other. The movie is mainly around the daughter waiting and growing up without her father. To me, it raises deep questions about life without using words but rather by playing with visual representations. For instance, we can wonder if death is not represented by this woman on a bike wearing black, but we can also guess that bikes represent mobility and lifetime. Throughout visuals a lot of issues are represented for instance loneliness, separation and so one and so forth. Beyond visuals, the simplicity of the music adds a melancholic feeling and stresses the despair of the daughter while waiting for her father. Plus, what is particularly remarkable is the impersonal dimension of the characters in the movie, that enables viewers to relate more easily to the situation and share the main feeling of separation by indirectly transposing their situation to the character's. In the same perspective, the scenario is precise but there is an absence of dialogue which enables a real freedom of interpretation to viewers regarding the story and enables them to relate. Altogether, from music to visuals, the movie is beautiful and makes viewers relate/think about human relationships in time. I would highly recommend this 8 minute movie !